Facets of Me
by Zab Jade
Summary: [InuKai] Shortly after starting his first year of high school, Kaidoh is given an assignment in creative writing to explore the aspects of his personality. As he writes about himself, he shares the stories of his life with Inui.
1. Onyx

**Facets of Me**

**Facet One: Onyx**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Prince of Tennis or the associated characters.

**Warning: **Death of an OC

**Notes About the Japanese School System: **Kindergarten is from the age of three to six and is not mandatory. The Japanese school year begins in April, not in September like in the United States and other countries. The first term runs to around July 20, when summer vacation begins. Kids return to school in early September for the second term, which lasts until about December 25. The final term begins in early January and continues to late March. Students go to school on Saturdays, but only for half the day. They're off on Sundays.

**Story Note: **I started writing this and had the last chapter completely plotted out around the beginning of November, before issue 324, so some of the things happening in this fic are a freakish coincidence.

**… **

It's the thirteenth of April, only a couple of weeks into my first year at high school, but creative writing is already my favorite class. Hongo-sensei comes in and the annoying chatter of my classmates ceases. I sit up even straighter at my desk, eagerly awaiting the next assignment.

"The characters are a very important part of any story," she begins. "If the people you write about are flat and boring, no one is going to care about what happens to them. Real people have many facets, like a gemstone.

"During class, we'll continue to focus on plot and setting, but for the next several weeks, I want you to work on characterization at home. Pick out ten gemstones and write about times in your life that match the meanings of the gemstones or their colors.

"You won't be turning these in, so don't worry about writing things that are very personal. Don't force yourself to write about a different side of yourself for each situation. Unlike gemstones, the facets of a human overlap and merge.

"I'll give you ten weeks to work on these, and I highly suggest you do so, even though they won't be graded on them. During the eleventh week, you will write a story. It can be purely your own experiences or you can use a combination of your life and things you've made up."

The assignment sounds interesting, especially the option of mixing fact with fiction in the final part. It'll give us a chance to write what we know without having to bare our souls to the teacher or our classmates.

I can already tell that several of my classmates aren't going to bother with anything but the final part of the assignment. I hiss softly to myself in contempt. Morons. If nothing else, the first parts of the project will be valuable writing experience.

Once class is over, I gather my things and head to tennis practice. I hate being a first year again. Even though I have more tennis experience than some of the regulars, I don't get to do much other than fetch balls, swing a racket, and help with the cleaning.

At least I conduct myself with quiet resignation, unlike that idiot, Momoshiro. If I had known he was taking the entrance exam to get into this school, I would have tried for the high school Fuji-senpai and Kawamura-senpai are going to.

Oishi-senpai and Kikumaru-senpai attend this high school as well and are both second-year regulars. The latter snickers at a loudly complaining Momoshiro while the former looks at us both with sympathy.

I grunt noncommittally as Oishi-senpai offers to help collect balls. Momoshiro and several of the other first-years shower him with gratitude. I ignore them all, especially Momoshiro. My mind is still on the creative writing assignment.

It's all I can think about as I jog home, Inui-senpai joining me as I pass the high school he and Tezuka-buchou are attending. He seems concerned by my obvious preoccupation, but smiles at me fondly when I absently mutter that I'm thinking about an interesting school project. After that, we run in companionable silence until we get to my house.

I greet my parents and head to my room, immediately pulling my creative writing notebook out of my school bag and sitting down at my desk with it. It's Saturday, so I have more of the day than usual to do my homework, plus all of Sunday. I could put the assignment off, but I want to go ahead and get started. I have a lot of ideas, but I'm still not sure what I want to write about.

I shudder as a specific memory surfaces, pushing aside all of my other ideas. Good characters are the ones who have several facets, the ones who have had a life of both pain and pleasure. If I'm ever going to excel at writing, I need practice at writing both.

I take a deep breath and, with a shaking hand, start writing about what led to the most painful time in my life.

_Onyx is a black stone. The stone itself is said to help release negative emotions such as sorrow and grief. The color can stand for negativity, death, and depression. Negativity and depression certainly describe most of my fifth year of life, but in order to really understand that, we have to go back to when I was four. _

_I was walking to school by myself when I first met Aoyuki Katashi. It was my second year of kindergarten and I considered myself quite old enough to walk to school without adult supervision. _

_The boy who came running up behind me, squealing loudly in childish glee, clearly felt the same way, though without much reason. I was a quiet, thoughtful child and clearly mature for my age while the other boy sounded like an escapee from the monkey house at the zoo. _

_"Hiya!" he chirped, slowing down as he reached my side. "I'm Aoyuki Katashi, but you can call me Tashi-chan! My family just moved here, and Mama doesn't think I should be going to school by myself yet, but I ran out while she was busy with my little sister, so now I'm off by myself. I think you go to the same school as me, so I'll just follow you." He paused for just a moment to catch his breath. "So, who are you?" _

_"Kaidoh Kaoru," I replied, glancing at him out of the corner of my eye. He was a fairly average looking boy with black hair and dark brown eyes. He wore a yellow bandana with white diamond patterns on his head. _

_Tashi's eyes widened with glee. "My sister's name is Kaoru! Her hair is longer than yours though, but I think you're prettier. How come you're wearing a boy's uniform instead of a skirt?" _

_I stopped and stared at him. "Because I'm a _boy_," I growled. _

_Tashi stared back. "But my sister's name is Kaoru, so it's a girl's name. And if your name is Kaoru, you must be a girl too," he said, obviously pleased with his logic. _

_"It's a boy name too," I grumbled, starting to get angry. _

_"Nuh-uh. My little sister is a girl and Mama wouldn't give her a boy name, so it's a girl's name, and you're a girl. But sometimes boys can be really mean to girls. Mama says only bad boys are mean to girls and that I should be nice to my sister and take care of her. But you don't have a big brother here with you, so if you want to pretend to be a boy, I'll go along with it, so the bad boys won't be mean to you." _

_"I'm not a girl!" I snapped, clenching my fists. I really wanted to punch him. He was annoying, and he kept babbling. Before I could act on my violent impulses, he leaned forward and kissed me on the cheek. My face suddenly felt hot, and I knew I was blushing. _

_"Don't worry, Kaoru-chan, I'll keep your secret and keep you safe," he announced proudly, grabbing my arm and dragging me off toward the school. _

_Normally, I sat by myself in the back of the class, but Tashi forced me to sit next to him at the front. He chattered animatedly with some of our classmates, often trying to get me involved in the conversation. He referred to me as a girl a few times, but he always corrected himself, giving me an exaggerated wink as he did so. The others looked at him strangely, but nobody said anything, mostly out of fear of my wrath. _

_I sighed sadly. I didn't want to be teased or called a girl, but it would have been nice if the other kids weren't so afraid of me. They all thought I was mean because of my looks, making judgments without bothering to get to know me. _

_By the time school was over, I had had more than enough of Tashi's weird assumption. Before he could head home, I grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled him with me behind the school building, where no one could see us. _

_"I'm a boy," I insisted, dropping my pants to prove it. I quickly pulled them back up, my cheeks flushed with embarrassment while Tashi stared at me in stunned disbelief. I suddenly wondered if he'd be mad at me for not being what he thought I was. He was annoying, but it was kind of nice to be around someone who wanted to be my friend. _

_"Wow," Tashi finally said. "I've seen my sister get a bath, and she doesn't have one of _those_. You must be a really special type of girl!" _

_I twitched a couple of times, but kept myself from hitting him. He was nice to me, and he wasn't afraid of me. It wasn't his fault he was an idiot and convinced I was a girl. _

_From then on, we walked to and from school together everyday. Tashi liked to talk about whatever happened to cross his mind, and I learned a lot about him just from listening. He adored his baby sister, and he had a lot of strange hobbies, including collecting and wearing bandanas. _

_I didn't talk as much, but he did manage to learn at least a bit about me. Including my birthday. On the morning that I turned five, he gave me a cookie and his yellow bandana as we walked to school. I gave him a quick, awkward kiss on the cheek. At the time, it seemed like a perfectly reasonable thing to do. He thought I was a girl and no one else was around to see. _

_He still babbled all the time, and he was still really annoying, but he was my friend. And sometimes he'd shut up long enough for me to talk. He would always listen intently when I spoke, especially when the subject was animals. It usually was. I really liked cats, dogs, and even snakes, though a lot of people made fun of me and called me a snake. _

_About a month and a week after my birthday, Tashi got in trouble and had to stay after for five minutes. I went on without him, but walked slowly and stopped by the side of the road several times to look at squirrels and birds. _

_It was during one of those stops that a group of fifth graders, two girls and three boys, found me. I sighed when I saw them and didn't bother trying to run. I'd had encounters with them before. All they'd do was push me around a bit and call me names. Then they'd get bored and leave me alone. _

_"What're you up to, Snake Boy?" the leader of the group asked, grabbing me from behind. "Gonna try to eat the birdies and squirrels?" _

_One of the other boys giggled. "If we catch a squirrel for him, do you think he'll swallow it?" _

_"Eeew!" the two girls squealed in unison. _

_"Don't!" I yelled as the third boy pulled a slingshot out of his pocket and aimed at a squirrel. I forced back tears as the innocent little animal hit the ground. How could anyone do something like that? _

_"Time for dinner, brat," the slingshot user called cheerfully as he picked the squirrel up by the tail. I tried to get away as he came toward me, but the leader of the group was holding me too tightly. _

_"Hey, leave Kaoru-chan alone!" Tashi yelled, seeming to appear out of nowhere. He slammed into the boy holding me and bit his arm. _

_The fifth grader yelped and let me go, shoving Tashi away from him. Tashi tripped and fell backwards into the street. There was a honk and the screech of breaks, and a small body flying away from the point of impact to land in a crumpled heap farther down the road. _

_I didn't rush to Tashi in a panic. I felt calm and sort of floaty as I walked into the road. I think I must have been in shock. He was still alive, coughing up blood, when I sat next to him and pulled him partially into my lap. _

_"Katashi?" _

_"It's Tashi-chan," he said weakly, grinning at me. His teeth were stained with blood. The smile quickly faltered. "I feel weird, Kaoru-chan. I think I got hurt, but I'm cold, and I don't hurt anywhere." _

_"You'll be okay, Tashi-chan," I lied. _

_"You're such a pretty girl, Kaoru-chan," he suddenly said. His eyes were strange as he looked at me, like he was seeing me from a great distance. "You should wear skirts. You'd look even prettier in skirts." _

_"I will. I promise." _

_Tashi smiled at me again, and then… he went away. His body was still there in my arms, but Tashi was gone… _

_His death had a large impact on me. I stole some clothes from a female cousin around my age, and for a little over a year, I wore nothing but dresses and skirts while insisting that I was a girl. Oddly enough, I didn't get teased for it. Tashi had slipped up so often that most of our classmates had started thinking I really was a girl pretending to be a boy. _

_My parents sent me to a therapist, which did some good, I suppose. I was back in boy's clothing by the time I started first grade._

I blink down at the notebook in mild surprise. The paper is damp in several places. I don't like to think about Tashi much. It always makes me feel weird. I wonder sometimes what my life would be like if he hadn't died.

I sigh and rub my arm across my eyes, getting rid of the annoying tears. It was a bad idea to write about Tashi. Now I'd be depressed and mopey for the rest of the day. I hate being depressed and mopey.

I hiss in annoyance at myself and change back into my usual training clothes. I hesitate as I reach for my green bandana, then go to my dresser instead and open the bottom drawer. It's stuffed full of bandanas. The one I want is near the bottom. It's yellow with a white diamond pattern. I've only worn it a few times since my first year of middle school.

I tell my parents that I'm going out for my evening jog, then head out the door, pausing only long enough to put my shoes on. Inui-senpai is waiting outside his apartment building and falls into step beside me as I run past. He glances at the yellow bandana, but doesn't say anything. He's used to me randomly wearing different ones.

I normally enjoy our quiet runs together, but right now the silence seems strange. Tashi had always chattered and jumped around like a demented squirrel. Inui-senpai likes to talk, but it's always about data and interesting things he's discovered. He's nothing like Tashi, but for some reason, being around him makes me feel the same way.

When we start running on the path through the park, a weird mood overtakes me. I give in to it, grabbing two long sticks from near a tree before running ahead of Inui-senpai. He looks at me oddly as I leap up onto one of the benches set along the path and toss one of the sticks at him.

"Kaidoh… are you feeling all right?" he asks, slowing as he catches the stick.

I poke him lightly in the shoulder as he comes to a stop beside the bench. "Do you ever do anything silly for fun, Senpai?"

He cocks his head slightly, studying me and no doubt wondering about my strange behavior. "No, I don't suppose I do," he answers slowly. He smiles slightly. "But it seems like it would be fun to try. If nothing else, I could collect some good data."

For the next fifteen minutes, we run around the park like a couple of little kids, pretending our sticks are swords. Inui-senpai manages to "kill" me and we continue our run, both of us smiling a bit.

Everything is normal after that, until we get into the shopping district and pass a dress shop. I stop abruptly and stare at the dress in the window. Its bodice is dark blue and the sleeves and full skirt are pale lavender. Buried deeply in my mother's box of family photos, there's a picture of me wearing a little girl version of that dress.

"Inui-senpai, can I borrow forty-seven hundred yen?" I ask suddenly. "I didn't bring my wallet with me, but I can pay you back when we get to my house."

He looks at me strangely but pulls his wallet out of his pocket and gives me the money. He waits patiently until I come back out with a large bag. He raises a brow, obviously curious but willing to wait until I feel like telling him what's going on.

I blush and fidget uncomfortably. "It's… for a friend," I explain.

Inui-senpai's expression becomes unreadable. "I see. I didn't realize you had any female friends."

He thinks Tashi is a girl. It takes a lot more effort than I like to think about to keep from bursting into a disturbing fit of giggles at that.

"Kaidoh?" Inui-senpai says in growing alarm.

I cough and manage to get myself under control. My eyes gleam slightly as I look up at him with a small smile. "Don't worry, Senpai, you don't have any competition from Tashi-chan. He's been dead for years."

His jaw drops and he stutters out a few words, clearly unsure of what to say. I just smile wider and start jogging again. I know I'm acting pretty strangely, but it's fitting. Tashi was a pretty strange little kid. Bizarre behavior seems like a better tribute to his memory than depression.

We run in silence back to my house, Inui-senpai glancing at me every few minutes, probably to see if I'm going to do anything else vastly out of character. I just smile at him, which doesn't seem to reassure him in the least.

"Do you want to stay for dinner?" I ask. He accepts the offer and follows me into the house.

"Mom, Inui-senpai is staying for dinner," I say, poking my head into the kitchen. "We'll be in my room."

The first thing I do is pay Inui-senpai back. Then I carefully take the blue and lavender dress out of the bag and hang it in my closet. Inui-senpai is sitting on my bed, watching with curiosity.

"You've been acting very strangely today, Kaidoh," he finally says. "Does it have something to do with that assignment you mentioned earlier?"

"Hongo-sensei asked us to practice characterization by writing about things that happened in our lives," I answer quietly. "I wrote about something I remember from when I was really young. It… wasn't a happy memory."

"May I read it?" Inui-senpai asks gently.

I hesitate a moment before giving him my creative writing notebook. If it had been anyone else asking, I would have refused. But Inui-senpai isn't anyone else.

I watch him as he reads, trying to figure out why he sometimes reminds me of Tashi. Tashi was an overly cheerful idiot. Inui-senpai is even-tempered and loves knowledge. Maybe it's because of how they both relate to me? They both got to know me instead of making snap judgments about my personality. Even Tashi's confusion about my gender had more to do with bizarre four-year-old logic than with making assumptions about me.

Inui-senpai finishes reading and sets the notebook beside on the bed. He sits there quietly for several moments before standing up and giving back the money I had repaid him. I blink at him in surprise.

"Consider it a gift for Tashi-chan," he says with a soft smile. "For being your friend and trying to stand up for you against those older kids."

"Inui-senpai…"

He silences me with a kiss, which is just as well. I hadn't really known what to say. I still don't. I wrap my arms around him and deepen the kiss, then immediately jump back slightly as someone knocks at my door.

"Kaoru, Inui-kun, dinner is ready," my mother calls.

Inui-senpai adjusts his glasses and smiles wryly. "Your mother's timing is either horrible or excellent. I am uncertain which."

"All mothers have horrible timing," I mutter, heading for my bedroom door. "Though it could have been worse."

"Indeed," Inui-senpai agrees, following behind me. Before I can go out into the hall, he lightly grabs my shoulder. "Kaidoh, if you don't mind, I'd like to assist you with your creative writing assignment."

I glance over my shoulder at him, thinking about it. I have nine more papers to write, each one giving a glimpse into who I really am. That's something that no one else knows, not even my parents or Inui-senpai. Do I really want to give anyone that much insight into the real me?

I smile at him. "Thank you, Senpai, your help would be appreciated."


	2. Hematite

**Facets of Me**

**Facet Two: Hematite**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Prince of Tennis or the associated characters.

**Author's Note:** The description of Inui's room is based on the few glimpses we get of it in the anime. For those wondering about the rating, there will be sexual situations in later chapters.

**…**

When Inui-senpai and I jog home together, we usually take a roundabout route to my house. Then I go inside and he heads home. This time, though, we go to his apartment first, and I go in with him.

Inui-senpai has a lot of furniture in his bedroom. There's a TV next to his door and a small bed against the opposite wall, in front of a window. One of the walls between the door and the bed is completely taken up with a writing desk, a computer desk, and a small dresser with a radio on it.

He motions for me to sit in the green chair in front of his writing desk as he perches on the low black stool in front of his computer. He pulls a sheet of paper from his printer and hands it to me.

"I did some research and made a list of various gemstones and the meanings associated with them and their colors."

"Thank you, Senpai."

I look over the list, underlining some of the stones and making notes beside them. After about twenty minutes, I've decided on eight stones. I need one more, and I can feel my cheeks heating in a blush as I read the properties of a specific stone. The rose quartz was embarrassing enough, but this one…. I remind myself that Inui-senpai is the only one who will be reading. It doesn't help.

I glance over at him. He's looking at me and smiling slightly. He's obviously noticed that I'm blushing for no apparent reason. Why, oh _why_ had I been afflicted with the curse of being so easily embarrassed? Why couldn't I have ended up as a cheerful, outgoing pervert or something? They don't get embarrassed.

Of course, then I'd just be a perverted version of that idiotic mutant, Momoshiro. I shudder at that thought and decide that if that's the alternative, then I'm perfectly happy being an easily embarrassed introvert with a temper and a major love of animals.

I sigh and start writing down the list of stones in my notebook. It'll be easier to find them there, rather than looking through the long list Inui-senpai compiled for me. First is hematite for loneliness. Then peridot for nature. Red jasper for coming out of one's shell. Ruby for courage. Sunstone for vitality and endurance. Garnet for popularity and increased self-esteem. Rose quartz for love. Fire opal for spontaneous action and enthusiasm. And then red tourmaline. For igniting passion.

My blush, which had faded, comes back full force as I list the last stone. I forcefully pull my thoughts away from… _that_ and focus on the first stone. I take a deep breath and begin writing about the facet of me that matches hematite.

_When polished, hematite is a gleaming, silvery-gray stone. Gray stands for sorrow and loneliness. I've never been very good at making friends, and after a while, I just stopped trying, even going so far as to deliberately drive people away. The pain of loneliness is so much easier to endure than the pain of rejection._

_My natural inclination has always been to keep to myself. I would often think wistfully about how fun it seemed to have friends, but I never really felt lonely. Until after Tashi, that is. He cheerfully forced his way into my life. And then he was gone._

_By the time I started first grade, almost two years later, I was mostly over the traumatic experience of having my best, and only, friend die in my arms. I missed just having a friend almost as much as I missed Tashi himself._

_The first day of school, I sat in the back of the class, occasionally hissing quietly to myself while I nervously watched my classmates. I know that the hissing is one of the things that makes people think I'm weird and scary, but I can't seem to make myself stop._

_Mom says I started hissing when I was two. I was left with an uncle for a week when Hazue was born. He had a lot of snakes, including a pit viper. He told my mother that I would sit and watch it for hours, attempting to imitate its movement and sounds._

_According to my mother, I was so upset about the new addition to our family that I refused to communicate in anything but hisses for two weeks. I only started talking again when I went outside and started yelling at the top of my lungs that we had a baby for sale for one-hundred yen. Hazue likes to bring that up whenever he wants me to do something for him._

_It was Hazue's first day of his second year of kindergarten, and he had probably already made several new friends in addition to the ones he had before. His features are actually sharper than mine, but his outgoing, friendly personality has always kept people from thinking he's mean and scary._

_I'm quiet and keep to myself. I guess it doesn't really give people a chance to get to know me. By the end of class, I came to the conclusion that I was going to have to approach someone and start up a conversation._

_As I started walking home, I noticed that a small group of kids was going the same way. The leader of the group was a girl who had seemed pretty friendly. With a feeling of nervous dread, I increased my speed and walked near the group. They all stopped, the lead girl turning to stare at me._

"_H-hi," I stuttered. "I'm Kaidoh Kaoru. We're in the same class."_

_The girl studied me for a bit, then nodded slightly. "I'm Yashatori Keiko. Do you want to play a game?"_

"_Sure!" That hadn't been hard at all._

"_We're going to play Seeing Eyes. You get to be the blind person, and we'll lead you someplace."_

_I closed my eyes and felt my arms grabbed by two people. They slowly walked into the grass at the side of the road, then suddenly stopped, squealing. They let go of me and ran off, practically shrieking with malicious laughter._

_I opened my eyes and looked down at my left shoe. They'd led me into a fresh pile of dog droppings. I rubbed roughly at my eyes, telling myself that boys aren't supposed to cry. I suddenly wished that Tashi had been right about me. Girls aren't expected to pretend they have no feelings. They don't have to act like being rejected and picked on doesn't hurt. Like emotional pain isn't real._

_I never approached anyone for friendship after that, though for a while I would respond when others came to me. They usually only offered friendship so they could play nasty tricks on me. By the end of my first year of elementary school, I had learned to push people away to keep myself safe. To hiss at them and talk roughly. It reinforced my image as someone unpleasant and frightening, keeping away even the people who might have ended up as real friends._

Once I'm done writing, I quietly hand the notebook to Inui-senpai, watching him as he reads. When he finishes, he sets the notebook down and shakes his head sadly.

"People think young children are so innocent, but they can be quite hurtful. And the pain they cause is expected to be quietly endured as a character building experience," Inui-senpai says, sounding bitter.

"You've had to deal with this kind of stuff too," I say with quiet certainty.

He nods. "My only real friend in elementary school was Renji and… well, you know how that turned out."

I nod, hissing at the mention of Yanagi. Inui-senpai says I shouldn't hate his old friend, but the bastard abandoned him. He probably had no say in it when his family moved away, but why couldn't he have called Inui-senpai, or written him a letter?

"In middle school, Tezuka and Oishi were the closest things I had to friends during my first and second year, but they weren't close friends at the time," he continues. He studies me for a moment. "Then there was my third year at Seigaku, and Echizen came to shake everything up. I sometimes wonder if I would have gotten to know you so well if not for him. You are quite skilled at keeping people away."

"We didn't really have much to do with each other during my first year," I pointed out quietly. "If not for Echizen, I don't think that would have changed. He's the reason I pushed myself so hard to beat you, which is why you took an interest in me."

Inui-senpai smiles and scoots his stool closer to me, slipping a hand under the edge of my bandana so he can run his fingers through my hair. "It's a good thing Echizen ended up at Seigaku. Now neither one of us has to worry about being lonely."

"We shouldn't tell him that, though. The brat is already full of himself," I say fondly. I hated him when he first showed up, but he slowly grew on me, like a fungus. Hell, I even cried like a pathetic baby over him when he went back to America for a bit.

Inui-senpai chuckles softly and pulls me against him, still petting my hair. Because of Echizen, I have six people I can count on, seven if you count that idiot, Momoshiro. Seven friends and one person who is more than a friend. One person who means more to me than anyone else ever can.

I smile suddenly. Inui-senpai is right. I never have to worry about being lonely again.


	3. Peridot

**Facets of Me**

**Facet Three: Peridot**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Prince of Tennis or the associated characters.

**Author's Note:** In the one scene where we get to see Hazue, he's eleven. We also get to see several flashbacks of Kaidoh when he was twelve. If you compare them, eleven-year-old Hazue is taller and has sharper features than twelve-year-old Kaidoh. Hazue is also very clearly a boy while Kaidoh has a kind of soft, roundness to his features at twelve that makes him look he could just as easily be a short-haired girl.

**…**

It's Saturday again, April 27, and I'm once more jogging to Inui-senpai's school with the intention of working on my creative writing assignment at his apartment. But before I get very far from my own school, I slow, my kitty senses tingling. Either a cat is going to show up out of nowhere and rub against my ankles, or I'm about to be…

I grunt and rock forward as someone slams into my back.

… pounced on by Kikumaru-senpai.

"Where are you off to in a such a hurry, Kaoru-chan?" he asks, rubbing his cheek against the side of my head.

I sigh in resignation. Not even Inui-senpai touches me this much in public, and even my mother stopped calling me "Kaoru-chan" by the time I was out of elementary school. I don't say anything though. Kikumaru-senpai is a force of nature, a typhoon packed into the body of a hyperactive redhead. There is no stopping him or changing his ways.

"I'm going to Inui-senpai's school," I say, answering his question.

"Nya! You two are so cute together!" he squeals, nuzzling my cheek. He reminds me so strongly of a cat sometimes that I often get the urge to pet him. I think that's part of why I tolerate him jumping all over me and calling me cutesy names.

What he already said was embarrassing enough, but he suddenly gives an evil little giggle and tightens his grip around my shoulders, and I just know he's about to say something even worse.

"Are you two going to spend the weekend together, making mad, passionate love?"

"Eiji!" Oishi-senpai sounds utterly appalled as he finally shows up, no doubt to collect his wayward boyfriend.

My face heats in a deep blush, and I long for the ability to just sink into the ground, never to be seen again. I wonder if things can get any worse and am immediately answered by a familiar snicker.

"I doubt it, Eiji-senpai. The Mamushi'll probably be a virgin at least until he's thirty."

It's impossible to glare over my shoulder at Momoshiro with Kikumaru-senpai still clinging to my back like a demented monkey.

"That shows what you know," I mutter, clenching my fists at my sides.

Momoshiro comes around to the stare at me incredulously. "Are you saying you aren't a virgin? Since when?"

"Momo," Oishi-senpai says in disapproval. Momoshiro and Kikumaru-senpai ignore him, the latter resting his head on my shoulder and bouncing slightly, clearly interested in my answer.

A lot of people don't consider something to be sex unless it includes male genitalia penetrating some orifice other than the mouth. If you go by that ridiculous definition, then I'm still a virgin. We haven't done that yet, but Inui-senpai and I have done a lot of other stuff, including some… uh… rather _interesting_ things involving lots of lubrication and the box of sex toys hidden under his bed.

"Since around the end of our second year of middle school," I say to Momoshiro, enjoying the look of utter shock on his face.

Kikumaru-senpai's surprise is enough that his grip loosens, and I break free, continuing my run to Inui-senpai's school before any of them can stop me. Inui-senpai is waiting for me when I get there, frowning slightly. Because the amount of time needed to clean the courts varies, we have no set meeting time. So he isn't frowning because of the few minutes it took to deal with Momoshiro and Kikumaru-senpai.

I don't say anything as we start toward his apartment, but I give him a look that tells him I know something is wrong and that I'm here if he needs someone to talk to. He smiles slightly at the offer, but doesn't take me up on it.

Once we get to his apartment, we go into his room, and I get started on my homework. The last two things I wrote for my creative writing assignment were kind of depressing, but I have something different planned for today. The point of the assignment is to show different facets of ourselves as we deal with different situations, not to dwell on the things that have hurt us.

_Peridot is a green stone that's considered a gift of nature. I've always loved nature, my happiest moments taking place while outside and interacting with animals. Animals don't care about how you look, and they don't care if you're too shy to approach them. They can sense good people, and they've been drawn to me for as long I can remember._

_When we were younger, Mom would usually take me and Hazue to the park on Sundays. She would sit on one of the benches and read while Hazue played with the other kids who spent their Sundays at the park. I would either run through the trees or find a quiet spot and sit absolutely still with seeds in my hand, waiting for birds and squirrels to come to me. Those weren't the only types of animals I attracted, though. Cats and dogs sometimes wandered the park, and they liked to spend time with me._

_One memorable time was when I was eleven and Hazue was nine. My little brother was already the same height as me and was very clearly a boy. I was stuck with the kind of features that, like my given name, could have belonged to either a boy or a girl._

_Hazue tried to get me to play with him, but I stalked off in a huff after one of his new friends asked if I was his sister. I soon ended up deep in the park, farther away than I was allowed to go on my own. Before I could start getting worried and turn back, something bounding through the trees and pounced on me, knocking me to the ground._

"_Gah! Get off!" I yelled, the stern tone I was trying for ruined by laughter as a large dog cheerfully licked my face. She obeyed the command anyway, her tail wagging and her tongue lolling in a happy, doggy grin._

_I pounced on her, and we wrestled and chased each other for ten minutes before she managed to dislodge my yellow bandana. While I was putting it back on, something caught the dog's attention, and she started barking in excitement. A woman suddenly burst out of the trees from where the dog was looking._

"_Trixie!" the woman cried out in obvious relief, dropping to her knees to hug the dog._

_I suddenly felt guilty. I should have been trying to find the dog's owner, instead of playing with her. The woman seemed to notice me then and stood up, coming over._

"_Thank you for playing with my dog," she said, sounding sincere. "She's got a lot of energy, and I never seem to have enough time to properly exercise her."_

"_She's a really nice dog."_

_The woman smiled at me. "If it's okay with your parents, maybe you could start taking her out on walks for me?"_

_My eyes widened at the offer. "You… you'd trust me with your dog?"_

"_Of course," she said, patting me on the head. "Some children can be cruel to animals, but I know a cute little boy like you would never hurt my Trixie."_

_As if in agreement with her human, Trixie barked and bounded over to me, enthusiastically licking my face._

_The woman laughed. "Besides, Trixie seems to like you, and she'd never make friends with someone mean. Why don't we find your mother and see if she'll let you walk my dog?"_

_Mom agreed to it, and I walked Trixie every Sunday for the next few years. I don't spend a lot of time with her anymore, but we run into each other in the park sometimes, and she's always happy to see me._

Inui-senpai has been quiet and subdued all afternoon, but he smiles as he reads about Trixie, the tension in his shoulders relaxing.

"It's a shame you can't have a pet," he says.

I nod. "Yeah. Mom says she'd let me have a cat or a dog if she wasn't allergic to them. I could have a fish, I suppose, but they're boring."

Oishi-senpai's birthday is in three days, and we're having a party for him tomorrow. The fish I got for him just swims around and eats. It's pretty to look at, I guess, but what's the point of a pet you can't play with?

Inui-senpai cocks his head and looks at me thoughtfully. Then he suddenly flashes a huge grin. "Yes," he murmurs. "that will work perfectly."

I stare at him in alarm. I love him dearly, but Inui-senpai _is_ a gleefully sadistic mad scientist. "You aren't planning to make my mother drink something to try to get rid of her allergies, are you?"

"Of course not, Kaidoh. Don't be silly," he gently chides. Then his expression becomes thoughtful again. "Although…"

"Don't you dare even _think_ about forcing one of your nasty drinks on my mother!"

He chuckles evilly and tries to pull off an innocent look. "Do you really think I'd try something like that?"

"Yes!"

"Well, yes, you're right. I probably would. But it likely wouldn't work, so I'll spare her." He kisses me on the forehead and stands up, humming to himself as he heads out of his room.

I watch him with narrowed eyes. He has some kind of evil plot in mind. But he's in a much better mood. My expression softens. I don't care if it probably means I'll be forced to drink something vile, it's worth it to see him happy again.


	4. Red Jasper

**Facets of Me**

**Facet Four: Red Jasper**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Prince of Tennis or the associated characters.

**Author's Note:** Momoshiro's judgmentalness isn't something I made up for the sake of Momo bashing (loves Momo… really!), he admits to it himself when playing against Ann after he lost his place to Inui.

**…**

It's Saturday afternoon again, but I'm running alone and heading for my own home. Inui-senpai has been increasingly agitated over the past week, and I found out why yesterday. That bastard, Yanagi, transferred to Inui-senpai's high school last week and joined the tennis club. He's been demanding a chance to talk things over and maybe work on mending their shattered friendship.

Inui-senpai finally gave in today, at my urging. Yanagi won't leave him alone unless he hears him out, then tells him to piss off. That doesn't really seem like Inui-senpai's style though. Maybe he'll poison Yanagi with a particularly nasty version of Inui Juice. The thought of Yanagi on the floor, gagging and twitching in juice-induced agony, fills me with the warm, fuzzy feeling usually only caused by fluffy kittens and Inui-senpai.

I'm in a better, if somewhat sadistic, mood as I reach my house, pausing to take my shoes off before going inside. I go upstairs to put my things in my room, then come back down and poke my head into the kitchen to greet my mother. Dinner won't be for a few hours, but she's already working on it.

"Do you need any help, Mom?" I ask, watching her expertly chop vegetables.

"Yes, actually," she says, looking over her shoulder at me with a smile. "Could you ask your father to get the pot down for me? Hazue's girlfriend is coming over for dinner, and I want to make something special."

I glance up at the large pot resting atop the cabinets. At roughly five feet and seven inches of height, I'm three inches taller than she is, so I might be able to reach it. "I'll get it for you."

"Kaoru, don't!" she calls in alarm, but it's already too late.

Even standing on the balls of my feet, I'm not quite tall enough to get a good grip on the rim, and I end up tipping it over instead. My vision blurs and my knees go weak as the heavy pot crashes down on my head. The sound of a teenage boy and a large metal object hitting the ground at the same time brings Hazue and Dad running into the kitchen to see what's wrong.

They both sigh in exasperation while Mom helps me to my feet and sits me down at the kitchen table. I really need the ability to sink into the ground. I keep finding myself in situations where it'd make things so much easier to deal with.

"Good grief, bro, you need to be more careful," Hazue says, going to the freezer to get an ice pack.

"He's right, Kaoru," Dad says before beginning the same lecture I get every time I screw something up. "Pushing your limits is a good thing sometimes, it helps one grow and become their best, but if you keep acting like there's nothing in the world you can't do, you're just going to end up getting hurt."

"I know, Dad," I say, wincing and hissing in pain as Hazue presses the ice against my head. "I'll be more careful in the future."

The brat snorts. "You _always_ say that," he points out.

"And you never seem to mean it," Dad adds. "You just keep pushing and pushing."

Mom puts her hands on my shoulders, probably in an attempt to be comforting. "Sweetie, you're as human as the rest of us, and humans have limits. It's nothing to be ashamed of."

"I know," I mutter, getting to my feet and darting from the kitchen. It makes my head hurt even more, but it's worth it to get away from them. I go to my room and curl up on my bed, taking deep, even breaths until the pain fades to something bearable.

I love my family, and I know they love me, but sometimes they treat me like a baby, even Hazue. Who, damn him, grew like a weed not long after turning thirteen, and is currently a few inches taller than me. He would have been able to get the stupid pot.

My not-so-little brother and our father act like I can't even eat without somehow messing everything up. They're always saying things like "it's hot, don't burn yourself", "your mother worked hard to make this, so don't spill anything", or "don't drop a cup of hot tea on your brother's lap again".

That last one usually makes me feel guilty, but I have to admit to being darkly amused about the tea incident whenever the brat is acting particularly brattish. Not that I'd ever do it on purpose. Probably.

If I ever get the courage to tell my parents about the real nature of my relationship with Inui-senpai, Hazue definitely needs to be capable of reproduction. Mom wants grandchildren some day, and if I was the only way to get them, she wouldn't hesitate to go after me with a frying pan before tying me up and marrying me off to some random girl.

Someone knocks on the door, and the brat pokes his head into the room. I throw a pillow at him, but he manages to duck.

"Go away," I mutter, not wanting to talk too loudly.

Hazue ignores me and comes over to the bed. I glare up at him only to find a cup of yogurt held out at me as a peace offering. I grumble and sit up, taking it from him with a grunt of thanks. The brat sits on my desk with his own snack.

"Sorry for chewing you out a bit down there," he says quietly. He sounds like he actually means it. "It's just… you're always trying to do more than you can, and I hate it when you get hurt. Especially after…."

He trails off, shuddering slightly, and I know exactly what he's remembering. It's been about three years, but the time I got badly beaten up while saving his ass is still clear in both our minds.

"I invited Sakuno-chan over for dinner," he says suddenly, probably to change the mood. "You should go out to eat with Inui-san tonight unless you want Dad to badger you about finding a girlfriend. Because if that happens, I'll finally snap and be forced to tell him that you're already in a relationship. Then he'll wonder if you're gay, and Mom will say, 'Oh, no, dear, Kaoru likes girls. He just likes Inui-kun even more than girls'. And then you'll hide under the table in embarrassment for the next four hours or so until I'm able to coax you out."

I choke on a spoonful of yogurt at that, and Hazue slides off the desk to pat me on the back. I don't know which is more disturbing: the fact that he imitated our mother's voice so well or the fact that he's probably right about what would happen.

By the time I stop coughing, my head is pounding again. "Keh. I'm going out to run for a bit, brat. Tell our parents that I'll most likely be spending the evening with Inui-senpai, working on homework."

Hazue looks at me skeptically. "Are you sure you should be running so soon after getting conked on the head?"

"Probably not. But no one has ever accused me of having any sense when it comes to limits." My mouth twitches up into a faint smile as I reach up to ruffle the brat's hair. He just snorts and shakes his head.

"Don't hurt yourself," he admonishes as I grab my school bag and head down the stairs.

I make sure I have my cell phone with me so Inui-senpai can call when he's finished talking to Yanagi, then slip my shoes on before opening the front door. I'm surprised to see Inui-senpai there, his hand raised to knock.

I blink at him. "Senpai, what are you doing here? What happened with Yanagi?"

He ducks his head and stares at the ground, lowering his arm as he does so. "I… uh… was supposed to meet with him after tennis practice, but I sort of stood him up…" he admits sheepishly.

I smile slightly at him. "Better him than me," I murmur.

Inui-senpai smiles back. "Indeed." He cocks his head. "Shall we go to my apartment now?"

I nod, then wince as the movement increases the pain in my head.

"Kaidoh, what's wrong?" he asks in alarm.

"…A pot fell on my head," I mutter, embarrassed. "I'm fine. My head just hurts a bit if I move around too much or too fast."

He takes my school bag from me and then gently grabs my arm. We go to his building at an easy walk, Inui-senpai glancing at me in concern every few minutes. He's overreacting, but I understand why. I lost my memory once during middle school after a head injury. It didn't last for long, but it had been rather distressing for him. My amnesiac self hadn't thought much of him, apparently. Though from what I've heard, that was mostly due to an incident involving Inui Juice.

When we get to the apartment, he tries to convince me to lay down for a bit, but I refuse. He sighs and settles for holding an ice pack against my head while I work on the creative writing assignment.

_Red jasper is, obviously, a red stone. The color red can stand for many things, both good and bad. It can mean love, passion, and energy. But it can also mean anger, a quick temper, and hatred. The stone itself can stand for balance and coming out of one's shell._

_I played tennis in elementary school, but by the start of my first year of middle school, I was considering giving it up. I wasn't a prodigy like Fuji or Echizen, but I was good, and that made it hard to find an opponent who would actually push my skills to their limit. Then I heard about an amazing first-year in the tennis club._

_That's when I saw Momoshiro for the first time. He was incredible, and my initial feelings toward him were admiration and a little bit of hero worship. He was just a first-year, and he had won a love game against an older boy. I wanted to play against him, wanted to test my skills against his._

_And when I got to know him, he turned out to be a cheerful, outgoing, friendly idiot, just like Tashi. Except… Momoshiro was the type of person who made snap judgments about other people, usually based on their appearances._

_I was used to people making fun of me and calling me names, but it hurt so much more when Momoshiro did it. I managed to keep it all bottled up inside until the day I went into the clubhouse and found my yellow bandana filthy. It looked like someone had spilled dark liquid on it, or had used it to wipe up a mess._

_Momoshiro was the only other person in the clubhouse at the time, so I picked up the bandana and glared at him._

"_Are you the one who got my bandana dirty?" I growled, already certain that it had been him._

"_Heh, oops. But there's no reason to get mad over it," he said, laughing and rubbing the side of his head as if it wasn't the least bit important._

"_Bastard! You better have been planning to apologize!" I snarled, one hand clenching into a fist at my side while the other held up the soiled bandana. Tashi had given it to me, and that… that uncouth _monkey_ had had his filthy paws all over it._

"_What do you want?" he asked, looking bewildered and a little angry._

"_Say you're sorry!" I grabbed his shirt and shoved him. He grabbed mine and shoved back._

_The door suddenly opened, and Oishi-senpai came into the clubhouse. "Hey, what are you guys doing?"_

"_You're getting way too close to me!" I spat at Momoshiro, ignoring Oishi-senpai. The spiky-haired jerk had his hands on my shoulders, bunched into my shirt._

"_You too! You're all snake-like and an eyesore!"_

_"_Fsshuu_…"_

_Inui-senpai came in at that point, and he and Oishi-senpai managed to get us apart before we killed each other. I was different after that though. I've always had a temper, but before that incident, I was able to keep it tightly under control. Momoshiro had pushed me over the edge of a cliff I hadn't even known I was standing next to._

_My temper transformed from a large, chained dog into a raging beast I could barely control. A beast that turned on anyone who annoyed me, and even turned on me several times. I lashed out at people, and sometimes I would hurt myself if there was no other outlet for my rage._

_Some good did come out of it though. In class and around my family, I was still the same quiet, mostly well behaved kid, but out on the courts, I was considered tough and violent, someone it was better not to mess with. Never again would anyone shove me around or hold me down and try to force me to swallow a dead rodent. I was sick of being picked on, and I wasn't going to take it anymore._

_I still kept people at a distance, but I started talking and interacting with others more, slowly coming out of my self-imposed bubble of isolation._

"This relieves a worry I'm somewhat embarrassed to admit I had," Inui-senpai says quietly after he finishes reading. I glance at him, cocking my head slightly in silent inquiry. "Momoshiro's personality is very similar to Tashi's. I… um… was concerned that he might be a rival for affections because of it, especially since the two of you attend the same school."

I wrinkle my nose in disgust and hiss. "That's something you'll _never_ have to worry about. Momoshiro is an asshole, and I'm not attracted to assholes." I give him a seductive look. "I'm attracted to… mad scientists."

Inui-senpai smiles slightly and raises a brow. "Really now? You know, I could use a good lab assistant. Would you like to… experiment with me?"

"Oh, hell yes," I purr huskily.

"To the kitchen!" He stands and darts from his room.

"But I refuse to drink anything we make," I call out with a grin as I slowly follow after him.


	5. Ruby

**Facets of Me**

**Facet Five: Ruby**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Prince of Tennis or the associated characters.

**…**

To most people, May 11 isn't any different from any other day. It really isn't all that different for me either, except that on Friday, May 10, I was fifteen, and now I'm sixteen. Still, I am kind of excited about it, though I keep from showing it at school, even when Kikumaru-senpai pounces on me and wishes me a happy birthday.

Even though my friends from Seigaku have had a small party for me for the past few years, it still feels kind of strange to have non-relatives acknowledge my birthday. Before my second year at Seigaku, the only time that happened was when Tashi gave me his yellow bandana and a cookie.

When I get to Inui-senpai's school after tennis practice, he isn't waiting for me. It's unusual, but not unheard of. He _is_ the manager of the tennis club, after all. I put my stuff down and lean against the large brick sign displaying the name of the school, mostly hidden from sight as I wait for Inui-senpai. It's only a few minutes before I hear a familiar, and intensely disliked, voice.

"I transferred to this school in hopes of mending our friendship, Sadaharu. How can I make amends if you do nothing but ignore me?"

"Not today, Renji," Inui-senpai says with a sigh. "Kaidoh is probably waiting for me."

"Yes, today. And I know it's nice to be around someone who so obviously admires you, but by spending so much time with that strange snake child, you're leading him to believe you have feelings for him."

Yanagi's words piss me off, and I push away from the school sign, walking around it to face him. Before I can do or say anything though, Inui-senpai notices me and immediately approaches.

"My apologies for this in public, Kaidoh," he murmurs softly, so only I can hear him. Then he pulls me close and kisses me.

I'm not comfortable with public displays of affection, preferring to keep my feelings private, so my first instinct is to push away from him. Then I hear Yanagi gasp in shock. With a low hiss, I wrap my arms around him and enthusiastically return the kiss.

Inui-senpai doesn't end the kiss until we both have to breathe. "Happy birthday, Love," he says, loud enough that Yanagi can hear him. Then, without looking back at his former best friend, he links his arms with mine and we start to leave.

I have the strong urge to look over my shoulder and stick my tongue out at Yanagi, but that wouldn't be the most incredibly mature thing to do. My childish side argues that I just turned sixteen, not twenty-six, so I'm allowed to be immature. I point out that it would be something Momoshiro would do, and that shuts my childish side up.

When we get to Inui-senpai's apartment, he tells me he has a present for me, but that he's going to wait until evening to give it to me because it will be distracting. That piques my curiosity, but I don't ask any questions.

There are some who wouldn't bother with their homework until tomorrow, but I want to go ahead and get it out of the way. Then I won't have it hanging over my head all weekend. I work on the easiest stuff first – English, Japanese literature, and science – and Inui-senpai helps me with the math. Then there's only the creative writing assignment.

_There are things in this world that are obvious and unchanging. Fire is hot. Ice is cold. Momoshiro is an idiot. And rubies are red. Both the stone and the color have several meanings, including love and courage. True courage, it seems to me, is often inspired by love. _

_My two favorite places are the river and the park. Hazue likes them too, and I always checked those places when I was sent to fetch him home. If he wasn't at the park, I could usually find him playing happily by the river. That wasn't the case one day during my first year at Seigaku. He was, indeed, at the river, but instead of playing, he was arguing with a huge, muscular high schooler._

_I wasn't close enough to hear what Hazue said to him, but the high schooler suddenly grabbed him by the back of the head and dragged him to the river, crouching and pushing my little brother's face into the water. I doubted the large teenager was going to murder a ten-year-old boy, but multiple near drownings wasn't much better than the real thing._

_I had no chance against him, I hadn't hit my growth spurt yet so he was at least twice my size, but I couldn't just let him torment Hazue like that. Not caring about the consequences, I ran at the high schooler, slamming into him with my full weight. Which was just barely enough to knock us both to the ground._

_Hazue lifted his head from the water, scrambled to his feet, and fled. I didn't blame him. Older brothers are supposed to look after their little brothers. It was my duty to protect Hazue and keep him safe._

_As I'd hoped, the high schooler didn't seem to care about my little brother anymore. He had new prey. He got back up to his knees, and shoved my head into the water._

_I fought to get away, my heart pounding in panic. Finally, he yanked at my hair, pulling me out of the water. As I gasped desperately for air, I noticed that my bandana was in the river, floating away. I reached out for it just as the older boy forced my head back under._

_He suddenly yelped in pain and released me. Hazue was back, shaking and scared, but determined to help. He had kicked the high schooler. The huge teenager bellowed in rage and cocked his arm back to punch Hazue. I couldn't let him do that._

_He shrieked and started punching me in the head with his other fist as my teeth sank into his forearm. I didn't let go, and he eventually grabbed my hair again, pulling off his arm and shoving me away from him. I hit the ground hard, coughing and spitting out a chunk of flesh._

_"Stupid brat!" he screamed, drawing back his leg to kick me. As it snapped forward, I lunged at him and bit him again. I had to keep him focused on me so he'd leave Hazue alone._

_He gave another loud shriek as my teeth pierced his calf. I suddenly wished that I really was part snake like Momoshiro always claimed. The high schooler deserved to be pumped full of venom._

_"Get off me, you little freak!"_

_He started punching me in the head again, but I only bit down harder. I was a tenacious, stubborn little brat, and he was going to learn that the hard way. The only way he'd be able to get to hurt my brother was if he knocked me unconscious or killed me first._

_I held on until he finally managed to hit me hard enough to knock me senseless. Then he cursed and kicked me in the ribs a couple of times. He was hurt though, and instead of causing any more trouble, he limped away at the fastest speed his injured leg would allow._

_It took a few minutes for me to sit up, and when I did, I didn't see Hazue anywhere. Of course, I couldn't really see much of anything. Blood was dripping into one of my eyes, and I was having trouble focusing._

_A sound from the river caught my attention, and I fought my way to my feet through a wave of dizziness. I wasn't steady, but I was upright. And Hazue was standing at the bank of the river with my yellow bandana in his hand. I couldn't see well enough to tell for sure, but it looked almost like he was trying not to cry._

_"K-Kaoru-nii?" he stuttered, his voice thick with fear and unshed tears. "I… I found your bandana."_

_I blinked at him, trying to clear my vision, then took a step forward. That one step made the world spin in crazy circles for a few moments, so I decided to stay put. I wondered why Hazue was so upset. There was blood on my mouth. Maybe he thought I'd turned into a cannibal and would try to eat him._

_I wiped the blood away and tried to look harmless. Hazue cautiously approached me, stopping about two feet away. Then, with a strangled sob, he threw himself at me, crying against my shoulder._

_"It's okay, Hazue," I said, wrapping my arms around him and nuzzling his hair. My words came out slurred. "He's gone now, and if he comes back, I'll protect you. I won't let anyone hurt you."_

_That just made him cry harder and rest more of his weight against me. I could barely hold myself up, much less both of us, so I went down to my knees, taking Hazue with me._

_"It's okay," I repeated, starting to rub his back._

_"N-no it isn't," he choked out between sobs. "He… he was picking on me, but I told him off. I should have just walked away. But I didn't, and you… y-you got_ hurt _and it's all my fault! A-and… I ran away! I'm so sorry!"_

_"You came back, little brother," I murmured. "You came back, and that's all that matters."_

Inui-senpai is quiet for several moments. Then he puts down the notebook and grabs me. I yelp in surprise as he pulls me off of the chair and practically into his lap, pressing my head against his chest as he hugs me close.

"I remember when that happened," Inui-senpai says softly. "You were absent for two days, and when you returned to school with a black eye, cracked ribs, and minor skull fractures you claimed you had fallen down the stairs while in a hurry. Momoshiro teased you and called you a klutz for the next three weeks. Why didn't you tell us the truth?"

I shrug and pull away a bit, looking down at the floor. "I took on a high schooler who was twice my size and drove him off. I didn't want to sound like I was bragging."

Inui-senpai stares at me incredulously and slowly shakes his head. "Just when I think I finally have you figured out…" he mutters.

I smile slightly. "If you could figure me out that easily, I wouldn't be as interesting."

He chuckles softly. "There is that." He sighs. "We should be going, or we'll be late."

I nod, and we're soon on our way to Kawamura Sushi. The last time we all gathered here was two weeks ago, the Sunday two days before Oishi-senpai's birthday. He likes the new pet fish I gave him.

Kawamura-san has reserved the restaurant for us, just like he used to whenever we won a tournament in middle school. Then he goes upstairs to the living area and leaves the sushi-making to Kawamura-senpai. My first present is from him, a coupon for a month of free sushi.

Tezuka-buchou is next, quietly handing me a paperback book wrapped in a simple blue and white bandana. The book is a fantasy novel written in English. Oishi-senpai gives me a gift certificate to a tennis shop. Momoshiro gives me a package of socks. I roll my eyes and hiss at him.

The rest of the gifts all have the same basic theme. I receive a cat pendent on a silver chain from Fuji-senpai and a blue bandana with images of Karupin on it from Echizen. Kikumaru-senpai gleefully hands me a stuffed pink cat with a face suspiciously similar to his.

It's a small, quiet party, but it's fun, and we all stay for several hours before finally dispersing. I go home with Inui-senpai, having already made arrangements to spend the night.

When we get to his apartment, he smiles and hands me a brightly wrapped box. "I need to pick something up from my neighbor. I'll only be a minute, so go ahead and open that before I get back."

He's gone before I can do more than blink in confusion. Why does he want me to open it while he's gone? I shrug and sit down on the couch to unwrap the box. Inui-senpai's mind works in mysterious ways. It's usually best to just go along with him.

I blink again as I peer into the box. There's a collar, some cat toys, two small bowls, and a bag of kitten chow. Then Inui-senpai returns, and I stare, wide-eyed, at the adorable black kitten in his arms.

"I know you can't have a pet at your own home, but there's no reason you can't have one that happens to live here," he says, sitting down next to me and carefully giving me the kitten.

It starts purring, leaving me immediately smitten. I give Inui-senpai a quick kiss on the cheek, then proceed to utterly ignore him for the next couple of hours. He seems more amused than annoyed. He was probably expecting that reaction.

Finally, the kitten, who I decide to name Kageko, goes over to the front door and curls up to sleep in one of Inui-senpai's shoes. Inui-senpai chuckles softly, capturing my attention once more. He holds out the book Tezuka-buchou gave me, one eyebrow raised in inquiry. He likes to hear me read out loud, especially when it's in English.

We settle down on the couch, Inui-senpai stretching out his legs with his back against one of the arm rests. I sit on his lap and lean back against him before opening the book.

"He shouldn't have taken the shortcut," I read in slow, but clear, English.

I practiced with Echizen all during my third year at Seigaku and am rather proud of my English skills. He says I speak it fairly well, but claims that I pronounce my Ls and Rs like a weird combination of the two letters. Echizen is clearly insane. The letters sound alike.

The book starts off with a lot of action and excitement, with a nasty bastard who reminds me of that high schooler getting his ass kicked. Unfortunately, I have a habit of moving around a bit when reading something exciting. Which probably isn't the best idea ever when sitting in the lap of a teenage boy. No matter how mature and intellectual he is, a teenage boy's body will almost always react to someone inadvertently squirming against his crotch.

"Keep reading," Inui-senpai murmurs huskily, his breath hot against my ear.

I shiver and focus on the book again, resuming from where I left off. I only manage one more paragraph before stopping again, gasping softly as Inui-senpai's hand slides into my shorts and settles between my legs. I know he'd stop touching me if I asked him too, and he knows I'd ask if I wanted him to. I don't say anything.

"Keep reading," he repeats, nibbling lightly at the side of my neck. He slowly arches his hips, beginning to rub and thrust against me as his hand caresses me.

I start reading again, but it's hard to focus on the words. I stutter and repeat myself a few times as he steadily increases the speed of his hand and hips. I stop reading for a third time, my head going back while my pelvis arches, pushing up against his hand.

Inui-senpai growls and shoves me back down tightly against his groin. But he doesn't ask me to start reading again, which is just as well. I seem to have temporarily lost my ability to understand written English, and the words on the page are nothing but a mass of incomprehensible gibberish.

I shudder with pleasure and bite my lip to keep from crying out. Then Inui-senpai thrusts hard against me several times in rapid succession, his teeth sinking into my shoulder to muffle his own cries. He starts stroking me even faster after that, and soon we're both spent and panting softly to catch our breath.

"Good data," he murmurs softly, nuzzling the side of my face. "It would be interesting to see if it's possible to increase the amount of time you can focus on a foreign language while being distracted."

I turn my head slightly and stare at him. "You are so _weird_ sometimes, Senpai."

He grins and kisses me softly on the cheek. "Yes, but that's part of my unique charm, and you know you like."

"Very true," I murmur, snuggling warmly against him. "Very true."


	6. Sunstone

**Facets of Me**

**Facet Six: Sunstone**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Prince of Tennis or the associated characters.

**…**

The little huntress crouches, her hindquarters wiggling in excitement before she pounces. Her sharp baby teeth grip the sock mouse as she flips onto her back, the claws of her hind paws raking against the toy that had started out as one of the socks Momoshiro gave me a week ago.

I'm so focused on Kageko that I give an undignified squeak of surprise when Inui-senpai suddenly rests a hand on my shoulder.

"Playtime is over. You have homework to do."

"Aww… just five more minutes? Please?" I turn to look at him, but he hastily puts a hand over my eyes.

"The Puppy Dog Eyes of Doom won't work on me this time," he says, sounding amused. "I've already given you an extra hour. If the kitten keeps you from completing your homework, your parents won't let you stay here as much."

He pulls me up off the floor and steers me into his room. I grumble, but get to work. The sooner I finish everything, the sooner I can get back to playing with my kitten. Once everything else is out of the way, I begin the next part of my creative writing assignment.

_Sunstone is an orange stone that represents vitality and endurance. My tennis style has always involved outlasting my opponent, but until my first match against Echizen, it was mostly about wearing the other player down rather than counting on my own endurance._

_Then Echizen used my own strategy against me, and I didn't take it very well. I was filled with an overpowering rage and the need to just hurt someone. Luckily, there was no one other than myself within easy reach at the time, and I satisfied my need for violence by beating my own knee bloody with my racket._

_After my disastrous match against Echizen, I held on to my regular spot by defeating Inui-senpai. Instead of being angry, he created a training program to enhance my endurance. I insisted on doing twice as much as he originally wrote out for me, and then ended up doing even more than that._

_I pushed myself hard, jogging a total of thirty kilometers every day along with three sets of fifty shuttle runs and one-hundred and fifty push ups. At first, it left me so utterly exhausted that I could barely move at the end of the day. Gradually, though, I started to get used to it, and it became easier. When that happened, I started doing even more._

_My feelings of self-worth increased along with my endurance. People like Echizen and Fuji-senpai may have been able to do incredible things due to natural talent, but they couldn't do this. They didn't have the burning desire to go beyond all their limits. They'd never be able to push themselves to the point where even the smallest movement was a nearly unbearable agony._

_Inui-senpai made me stop doing that when he found out, telling me that it could cause a lot of damage to my body because I was still growing. But I still had the knowledge that I _could _push myself that hard, that I had the inner strength and dedication necessary for it._

_For a while though, that was just an abstract concept in the back of my mind. It really hit home during my match with that rhythm freak, Kamio. He pissed me off, and I tried to decapitate him with my racket right before we started the match._

_That's when I pulled off the Boomerang Snake for the first time. It was a lucky accident, and I lost a few games while trying to figure it out. Then Ryuzaki-sensei reminded me of my tennis style. I outlast people. My Snake wasn't fast enough to make Kamio lose endurance, but it didn't matter. I had more than enough of my own to defeat him._

_The incident before the match was one of the last times I was excessively violent towards anyone other than Momoshiro. It was like I no longer had to give in to the temper that coiled inside me like a savage, hungry beast. If I could push my limits so far, then I had the inner strength to deal with things without lashing out. I just hadn't realized it until then._

"Hmm. I had noticed a decrease in your violent tendencies shortly after I started creating endurance programs for you, but I hadn't realized there was a connection."

I'm only vaguely aware of Inui-senpai's words, most of my attention forced on Kageko. I'm crouched on the bedroom floor, making clicking noises at the kitten and dangling a sock mouse in front of her. Inui-senpai notices my inattention and sighs in exasperation.

"I see that I will have to dress up in a cat ear headband and a belt with a cat tail if I want any attention from now on," he mutters, mostly sounding like he's joking.

It immediately captures my full attention though, and I stare up at him with wide eyes as I imagine him wearing those things… and nothing else. With a low, almost feline growl, I pounce on him, knocking him off his computer stool. He hits the ground with a grunt and a thump, and I pin him down, kneading his shirt like a cat.

"K-Kaidoh?" he stutters in alarm. His glasses have fallen off, revealing his dark green eyes.

I shift slightly, positioning myself like I'm going to kiss him. I lower my face towards him, and then…

"Meow."

He blinks and stares at me incredulously. "Did you just…?"

I smirk and start making a purring sound by vibrating the tip of my tongue against the roof of my mouth.

Inui-senpai snorts. "And you claim _I'm_ weird?"

I stop purring and respond to that with all the maturity and dignity it deserves. I stick my tongue out at him.


	7. Garnet

**Facets of Me**

**Facet Seven: Garnet**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Prince of Tennis or the associated characters.

**…**

"Ten milliliters of citric acid," Inui-senpai says, holding out his hand. I carefully measure the citric acid out into a test tube and give it to him.

We're in his kitchen, and I'm currently wearing goggles, latex gloves, and a white lab coat. None of it's actually necessary, but it's fun to dress the part when I'm acting as his evil lab assistant. Kageko is on the counter, blissfully gnawing at the corner of a piece of raw sashimi grade salmon.

The kitten isn't the only new addition to our occasional bouts of collaborative mad science. Yanagi is here as well, staring in horrified fascination at the ingredients set out on the counter.

"Seven-hundred milliliters of black vinegar."

I keep a surreptitious watch on Yanagi as I measure out and prepare the ingredients Inui-senpai calls for. The former Rikkaidai player has no interest in Inui-senpai beyond friendship, but for the past two weeks he's been trying to convince him that I'm an utterly inappropriate person to be in a relationship with.

The entire situation has been distressing for Inui-senpai, so I asked him to invite Yanagi over today. I also suggested that we make a batch of Inui Juice. I'm not sure if Inui-senpai's gleeful sadism has rubbed off on me, or if it's something that's always been a part of me, lurking deep in the shadows of my psyche.

An apple, two teaspoons of salt, a banana, a can of beets, and one-hundred milliliters of clover honey go into the blender with the previous ingredients. I carefully cut away the corner of salmon Kageko has been nibbling at and hand the rest to Inui-senpai. Just looking at the resulting mixture makes me feel queasy, and I'm glad I won't be drinking any of it.

Inui-senpai pours some into a cup and holds it out to Yanagi. "Would you like to try some?" He takes a small sip and smiles. "It's quite good."

Seeing Inui-senpai drink it with no ill effect gives Yanagi the courage to take the cup from him.

"Try to drink as much of it in one gulp as you can," I suggest helpfully. "It works best that way."

Yanagi gives me a dubious look, but follows my advice. He downs a little over half the juice before the cup falls to the ground. He claps his hands over his mouth as his face turns a hideous shade of green.

"The bathroom is that way," I say blandly, pointing down the hall. He runs to the bathroom, and the apartment is suddenly filled with the sweet, sweet sound of violent retching.

Inui-senpai clicks his tongue in exasperation and cleans up the spilled juice before filling another cup.

"He'll probably be in there for a while," he comments, taking a sip with apparent enjoyment. Sometimes I seriously start to wonder if he's really human.

I want to have a talk with Yanagi, but Inui-senpai is right. He'll likely be in the bathroom for a while. I shrug and head for Inui-senpai's room. I might as well work on this week's installment of my creative writing assignment.

_Garnets are dark red stones, and like most other red stones, they have many meanings. There are two properties that seem unique to the garnet though. Popularity and increased self-esteem._

_It had apparently existed from the time I first joined the tennis club, but it wasn't until shortly after we defeated Fudomine that I found out I had a fan club. It was small and mostly filled with other social misfits, but it was still a group of people who admired and looked up to me._

_Some people, when they discover that they're popular in some circles, change. They become smug and arrogant. They start thinking they're better than everyone else. I changed as well, but not in that way. I started thinking that maybe I was just as good as everyone else._

_I was still too shy to just approach anyone, even the other regulars, but I dropped a lot of my defenses around them. Not long after that, I started talking to Inui-senpai a bit more. And he started talking even more to me, once he realized that I truly did enjoy listening to him._

_We weren't really friends yet, but we saw and spoke to each other a lot. I think that's why Inui-senpai came to me when he was looking for a doubles partner. For a doubles pair to really work, you have to trust your partner and be able to depend on him._

_I refused his request at first, for two reasons. The first was because of my own stubbornness. I wanted to play singles. I wanted to win by myself, with nothing but my own hard work and determination._

_The second reason was that I had a hard time believing anyone, much less someone skilled enough to hold his own against Tezuka-buchou for a while, would be willing to put their trust in me. I could, though, imagine him being willing to handicap himself by partnering with me in order to help me with my tennis skills. It didn't really take me long to agree to it, though I asked him if he was sure about it first._

_I let him down badly in our first match together. I perfected my Boomerang Snake, but we lost three games to six. Because of me. Endurance and tenacity are the only things I really have that make me anything special, and I didn't have enough of either for us to win. _

_Inui-senpai wasn't mad about it. He blamed himself, even though our loss was clearly due to my shortcomings. Despite that, he still wanted me to be his partner. I could tell from his expression as he told Ryuzaki-sensei that I no longer needed to play doubles because I had perfected the Boomerang Snake. He was willing to let me go back to playing singles if that was what I wanted, but he wanted me to stay his partner._

_I told him I still wanted to be his partner, that I hadn't paid him back yet in doubles. I used that as an excuse, but the truth was that I had _liked_ playing with him. I had hated it with Momoshiro, but Inui-senpai trusted me, even after I screwed up. _

_It felt good, knowing that he trusted me. Not only to make decisions that would help us both, but to listen to him and make use of his data. That trust was another boost to my self-esteem. I had my own little fan club, and I had finally found another person who seemed to like me and wanted to be around me._

_There were lots of idiots who would make snap judgments about me, but there were also people who liked me for who I really was._

While Inui-senpai reads, I go down the hall to the bathroom. Yanagi is leaning against the toilet, breathing heavily into the bowl. He doesn't look quite as green as before.

"Just a bit of advice: Never drink anything Inui-senpai offers you, even if he drinks it first."

Yanagi glares at me. I just smirk and go to the kitchen to get him a glass of water, then sit in the doorway after I give it to him.

"What, exactly, is your problem with me?" I ask bluntly. "Inui-senpai says you aren't interested in him romantically, so what's the point of trying to get him to dump me?"

Yanagi looks down his nose at me as he answers. "Sadaharu is quite intelligent. He should be with someone who can appreciate that fact and who is smart enough to stimulate him mentally. I would be a good choice, but I'm not interested in him that way. There are, however, many young women in his class who would be perfect. A few young men as well, if that really is his preference."

"Uh-huh." I look at him in mild disgust. I can't stand people who act like they're better than everyone else. "So you don't want Inui-senpai as a boyfriend, but you think he should be with someone like you?"

"Yes. No offense, but you are hardly his intellectual equal."

I snort and raise a brow. "And just what the hell does that have to do with anything? Inui-senpai likes sharing his knowledge with people. What would be the point if he spent most of his time around someone who knew all the same things? Inui-senpai is a kite, and a relationship with another kite would never work."

Yanagi stares at me like I've lost my mind and scoots a few inches away.

"Inui-senpai is a brightly colored kite designed to soar through a sky of knowledge. But if you just release him, he'll be at the mercy of the wind, lost in directionless solitude with no real connection to the world."

I can feel my cheeks heat with embarrassment as I talk. Inui-senpai says I have a poetic soul, but I'm not comfortable revealing that to others, especially not someone like Yanagi. But I need him to understand, or he's going to drive Inui-senpai insane.

"You could attach another kite to him, but that would be pointless. The new kite would be used to its own bright colors and wouldn't be able to fully appreciate Inui-senpai's. And it would be just as lost to the random whims of the wind.

"If you want to safely guide a kite through the air, you need a kite string. You don't really need anything fancy, just plain brown twine. It tethers the kite to the ground and gently guides it while giving it the freedom to soar and explore without the fear of becoming lost.

"The kite string, being nothing but rough brown twine, can really appreciate just how special the kite is. And the kite can take the string into the air, sharing the joy of flight. They aren't the same thing, but they complete each other, forming a whole that flies with confidence and grace."

Yanagi opens his eyes all the way and stares at me with something that might be respect. "It… seems I have misjudged you. You have a reputation for having a nasty temper and being anti-social. Sadaharu kept trying to tell me that there was a lot more to you than that, but I didn't want to believe him."

"Why not?"

"Because… I'm jealous of you," he reluctantly admits. "You aren't just someone he loves. You took over my place as his best friend, and as long as he's with you, I'll never get it back. Do you know what it's like to lose a friend who really seemed to understand and accept you?"

I glare at him in annoyance. "Yeah, I do know what that's like, but I don't feel very sorry for you. It's your own damn fault for not telling Inui-senpai that you were moving. And then for not calling or mailing him a letter. You could have kept in touch, but you chose not to. Your best friend wasn't taken from you, you gave him up."

Yanagi winces at the anger in my voice. "That's not quite what happened. Sadaharu's father died when he was a toddler, and his mother is gone all the time. And then my father got a better job, and I had to move away. I wanted to tell him, but I just couldn't do it. I didn't want to hurt him. And then I thought that a clean break would be easier for him to handle, so I didn't call or write."

I stare at him incredulously, then shake my head slowly in disbelief. "That's why you did it? You know, for someone who's supposed to be a genius, you're a real dumbass."

He flushes in embarrassment and possibly anger, but Inui-senpai comes down the hall before he can say anything.

"It would probably be best for you to return home and get some rest," Inui-senpai says to Yanagi as he reaches down and pulls me to my feet. "They're always good for the body, but some of my creations can be quite debilitating, especially when Kaidoh helps come up with the recipe."

Yanagi nods and clambers to his feet, obviously still not feeling well. Inui-senpai is still holding my arm and drags me along into the living room as he follows his former best friend.

"Renji," he says as Yanagi starts out the door. "You can come over Monday evening, if you'd like."

Yanagi looks startled, then he nods, smiling slightly before he leaves. Inui-senpai sighs and spins me around before pulling me tightly against him. He wraps his arms around me and rests his chin on the gray bandana I'm wearing.

"Senpai?"

"You aren't plain brown twine, you know," he murmurs, rubbing his cheek against the top of my head. I blush for the second time that afternoon. He heard all of that mushy kite drivel?

"You are my kite string, and I'd trust you to lead me anywhere. But I'd say you're more like blue nylon cord," he continues. Then he pushes me back just enough to let me see his evil grin. "Yes, definitely a blue nylon cord… with little pink ribbons tied around it."

I snort and lightly punch his arm. "Dumbass," I mutter. Inui-senpai just grins even wider and hugs me tight.


	8. Rose Quartz

**Facets of Me**

**Facet Eight: Rose Quartz**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Prince of Tennis or the associated characters.

**Author's Note:** My apologies for the lateness of this. I had the entire story written out before I began posting, but I had to move on short notice to a place where the internet was temporarily unavailable. The problem with the service provider has now been fixed.

**…**

It's two days until Inui-senpai's seventeenth birthday, and I twitch slightly with nervous anticipation as he neatly unwraps his gift. Tomorrow, there will be a small party for him at Kawamura Sushi, but today is just for us.

He removes the wooden chessboard from the box, then stares at the remaining contents in stunned disbelief.

"Kaidoh, how long… when did you…?"

"A little over ten months," I answer, knowing what he's trying to ask. "I woke up early every morning so I could work on them before school."

He carefully reaches into the box and starts pulling out the delicately carved and painted chess pieces, setting them up on the board. Each piece has a little cloth cloak. White for the ones patterned after Seigaku, and black for the ones patterned after Hyotei.

Seigaku is more detailed and personalized than Hyotei. Tezuka-buchou is the king, of course, and has a stern expression. He's holding a fishing rod in one hand to symbolize his love for camping, fishing, and other outdoor activities. His queen, Echizen, looks smug and is holding a can of grape Ponta. Oishi-senpai and Kikumaru-senpai are the bishops. Oishi-senpai is wearing an apron and holding a small fishbowl while Kikumaru-senpai has cat ears and a tail.

Inui-senpai and I are the knights. We're both on white horses, and he has a green notebook tucked under one arm and a tiny glass pitcher clutched in his other hand. My piece is wearing a cloth bandana. It was recently remade to include Kageko perching on my shoulder.

One of the rooks is Kawamura-senpai. He's holding a plate of sushi, and a smiling Fuji-senpai is pressed up against his back, peering over his shoulder. The other rook is Momoshiro. He has a big, stupid grin and is holding a half-eaten cheeseburger.

Five of the pawns are the people who became regulars during my term as the captain of the Seigaku tennis club. Arai, Ikeda, Horio, Katsuo, and Kachiro. The other three are Sakuno, Hazue, and Hayashi. The last switched out a few times with Horio as a regular.

The Hyotei pieces have Atobe as their king. Kabaji is his queen. The bishops are Akutagawa and Hiyoshi. Shishido and Ohtori are the knights, mainly because Inui-senpai and I faced them in our very first doubles match. The rooks are Oshitari and Mukahi. The pawns are just random people who were members of the club during that time.

I smile slightly as Inui-senpai carefully studies each piece, paying special attention to the two modeled after us. I quietly get to my feet and slip off to his bedroom. While he's distracted, I can get my homework done and out of the way. I want to be thinking about him this weekend, not school.

I wasn't paying attention to the dates when I set the order of the stones for my creative writing assignment. Today's stone is rather fitting.

_Being a pink stone, the rose quartz is mainly associated with love. People talk about love at first sight, but that seems a bit silly to me. If you see someone from across a room and are immediately smitten, it's most likely do to hormones, not love._

_Sexual attraction and love are not the same thing, though either one can lead to the other. I'm actually attracted to girls. They're pretty, and I like the way they look. But, because of how I feel about him, I'm also sexually attracted to Inui-senpai, who isn't the least bit feminine._

_The first time I saw Inui-senpai, my thoughts weren't "that is my soul mate and the person I am destined to be with forever" or something equally ridiculous. He was taking notes on Tezuka-buchou, and I thought he was weird._

_That remained my opinion of him all through my first year at Seigaku. Then, not long after I started my second year, my thoughts toward him changed. I started thinking he was weird, evil, and possibly insane._

_I have no experience with love at first sight, so I can't be sure, but it seems to me that love isn't very enduring when it basically smacks you upside the head with a two-by-four. It's deeper and more lasting when it creeps up on you like a ninja and stabs you in the back._

_That's how it was with me. I started spending a more and more of my time with Inui-senpai, and we slowly became friends, sharing out interests with each other. It got to the point where I was comfortable around him and felt almost like I had known him forever. Then he played a match against Yanagi, and I realized I loved him._

_I moved back and forth through the stands, following him whenever he changed courts. Everyone thought he was going to lose, but I knew better. He wouldn't, _couldn't_, lose. He trained harder than anyone else, even me. _

_A strange pressure seemed to be building up in my chest as I watched him, memories of how hard he worked playing through my mind. It felt like my heart was going to burst due to some emotion I couldn't really name yet. I couldn't keep it bottled up, though, and I found myself yelling "win, Inui-senpai", even though I usually consider cheering to be a useless distraction._

_It wasn't until the tiebreak ended, and I released the breath I had been holding, that I finally realized what I was feeling. _

_When Inui-senpai returned to the stands, I hung back at first, quietly watching as the others congratulated him and Kikumaru-senpai leaped on his back. Then Oishi-senpai told him to get down and shooed everyone else away. I wonder sometimes if he knew I needed a minute alone with Inui-senpai._

_Inui-senpai turned to face me and smiled. "See, Kaidoh? I told you not to worry."_

_I looked down, closing my eyes as I slowly smiled. Then I opened them again and looked back up at him, still smiling as I held out his light green towel. Instead of just taking it, he put his hand over mine, gently squeezing. And, without either of us having to say a word, he knew how I felt about him. And I knew that he felt the same way about me._

It isn't until Inui-senpai lightly rests his hands on my shoulders that I realize he came into the room while I was writing.

"It was roughly two weeks before that match when I realized my feelings for you," he says quietly. He must have been reading over my shoulder.

He lightly squeezes my shoulders before pressing a soft kiss to the top of my bandana-clad head. Then he moves away, digging into his closet for several shirts and a pair of pants. I blink in confusion when he tosses them at me.

"Put those on over your clothing," he says while pulling out clothes for himself. "You aren't wearing enough for what I have planned for the day."

I blink at him again, but obey his strange command. "What do you have planned that requires layers of clothing in June?"

He grins evilly at me. "Strip chess, of course."


	9. Fire Opal

**Facets of Me**

**Facet Nine: Fire Opal**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Prince of Tennis or the associated characters.

**Author's Note:** There will be two more chapters after this one. The final stone, and then a closing out chapter. One-hundred yen is roughly a dollar. If you remember back to one of the earlier chapters (Hematite, I believe), that's how much two-year-old Kaidoh wanted to sell Hazue for.

**…**

Over the past week, Kageko has acquired the habit of perching on my shoulder and watching as I do my homework. The movement of the pen triggers her hunting instincts just enough to keep her entertained without compelling her to attack.

"Mrrrrowmp!" she trill-purrs in excitement as I open up my creative writing notebook. She knows that means I'll be doing even more writing than usual. I scratch her ears, then set pen to paper and begin to write.

_The fire opal represents enthusiasm and spontaneity. I'm not really known for either of those things, but I have my moments. And those moments often involve Hazue._

_The duty of an older sibling is to guide, protect, and set an example. It's not an easy duty, as parents are more likely to spoil and indulge subsequent children. They're more secure in their parenting abilities and less strict. Because of this, the eldest child in a family often considers the younger ones to be hideous little beasts._

_Hazue, however, is a fairly good child. He's outgoing and happy and really the best little brother ever…. Yeah right, who the hell am I kidding? The brat is a hideous little beast, and there are a lot of times when I just want to smack him. I do love the little cretin though, and we've had a lot of fun together over the years._

_I don't like wearing socks. They feel confining, and the fabric is usually itchy. Despite that, there are times when I will wear them. A Sunday morning during my second year at Seigaku was one of those times._

_I had a pair on as I slid across the kitchen floor, wearing nothing else except black silk boxers, the white dress shirt that was part of my school uniform, and a pair of sunglasses. I was holding a broom and signing into the handle along with the radio._

_"Dare hitori mo kitsukanai ashimoto ni karamitsuku unmei no kusari. Yuuutsu na RU-RU wo kaiku gutte JARAJARA to hade ni abareteru."_

_Hazue joined me in the kitchen, wearing something similar and singing the next verse into a mop. "Machi ha nita you na hyoujou tsuku yatsura de. Afureteru oboreteru MANYUARU toori ni konashiteru."_

_We stood back to back and sang the next line together, as loud as we could. "I JUST WANNA BE A NAUGHTY BOY, NAUGHTY BOY!"_

_We danced around the kitchen and singing along with the radio, somehow managing to leave the room in better condition than when we started. When our mother came home for a moment between errands, we were sitting on the couch together in our normal clothing, watching TV._

_She looked around the house and smiled at us. "You already have all of your chores done. You're such good boys."_

_She gave us both some money, then hurried off to her next errand. Hazue glanced at his allowance, then at me._

"_Oi, dork boy, wanna go out for lunch and maybe get some ice cream after?"_

_"Tch." I reach over and ruffle his hair, mainly because I know it annoys him. "Sure, brat."_

Inui-senpai has a wistful smile as he reads, and I suddenly wonder what it's like to be an only child. Hazue was born when I was two, so I've been responsible for looking after and setting an example for him for as long as I can remember. Being an only child has a lot less responsibility, but it seems like it'd be very lonely.

"Having a sibling seems like it would be an enjoyable experience," Inui-senpai murmurs, his thoughts similar to my own.

"I can sell you mine for just one-hundred yen," I offer with a slight smile.

He chuckles and sets the notebook down. "You seem to have an interesting relationship with your brother. It's supportive, yet somewhat adversarial at the same time."

"I think that's the nature of most sibling relationships, especially when they're close in age. The younger sibling feels the need to test himself against the older, to see what the limits are and push them back if possible," I explain. "Hazue is pretty much a good kid, and we care a lot about each other. I've overheard him saying good things about me to his friends, and that incident with the high school kid wasn't the only time I had to rescue him from getting his ass kicked."

I smile slightly as I continue to think about my little brother. Despite my feelings when I was two and my joking offer to Inui-senpai, I would never be willing to sell Hazue. He's been with me for pretty much my entire life, and it would feel empty without him. It would be like losing a limb. Or Inui-senpai.

No amount of money would ever be enough to replace him.


	10. Red Tourmaline

**Facets of Me**

**Facet Ten: Red Tourmaline**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Prince of Tennis or the associated characters.

**Warning: **Sexual situations involving two boys.

**Author's Note:** Not yet the end, as there is a closing out chapter after this one. Tactile sensitivity is the reason I don't wear socks and like to wear as little clothing as I can get away with, and I have randomly decided that it is also Kaidoh's reason for not wearing socks and wearing as little clothing as he can get away with.

**…**

I stare at my list of gemstones, wondering just what possessed me to pick red tourmaline. Just thinking about it makes my face heat with embarrassment. I try to tell myself there's no reason to be embarrassed, but it doesn't help.

I've looked stuff up about sex several times when Inui-senpai was collecting data on the subject, and it never bothered me. Though I could have happily gone my entire life without knowing there was such a thing as armpit sex. Inui-senpai suggested we try it for the sake of data collection, but he wasn't very enthusiastic and seemed relieved when I said no way in hell.

I'm pulled from my random thoughts by Inui-senpai calling my name. He's finished with his homework and is looking at me with one eyebrow raised in inquiry.

"I'm… not very comfortable with what I plan to write," I admit. "And I let my mind wander instead of thinking about it. I don't even know how to start."

"Just do your best. And remember, it's practice, so it doesn't matter if you make mistakes, as long as you are prepared to learn from them."

He reaches out to lightly squeeze my shoulder, and I suddenly know how to get started. I give him a quick smile of thanks and begin to write.

_Red tourmaline has many properties. It is said to stimulate courage and rekindle one's passion for life. It is also said that it can fan the flames of passion in a relationship._

_I could attempt some sort of deep exploration into the nature of human sexuality and its role in interpersonal relationships, but I'm a sixteen-year-old boy. The average sixteen-year-old boy secretly, or not-so-secretly in some cases, wants to have sex with anything that moves. Or just lays there. Or is alive. Or reasonably comfortable to rub against._

_I'm a lot more average than I'm usually willing to admit, even to myself. Fortunately, I'm able, for the most part, to keep thoughts like "I wonder what it'd feel like to hump a tree?" locked away in the deepest reaches of my mind, along with musings about what one could do with a sufficiently lubricated tennis racket handle._

_If you take overactive teenage hormones out of the equation, sex in humans is essentially about touch. Humans are tactile creatures. Touch, or even the lack of it, defines all of our interpersonal relationships and molds the very fabric of our lives._

_The soft caress of a woman's hand against a baby's cheek is an expression of a mother's love for her child. The sharp sting of a spanking teaches the fundamentals of right and wrong. A punch to the face shows animosity and dislike. A hug when you've had a bad day lets you know that there's someone who cares about you._

_I suppose what I'm getting at, in a rather roundabout way, is that my first sexual experience with Inui-senpai was as much about the human need for physical contact as it was about teenage hormones._

_It was near the end of my second year at Seigaku, and I was pacing in Inui-senpai's living room, extremely agitated. Tezuka-buchou would be announcing his replacement the next day. I didn't think it would be Echizen, he wasn't quite ready to be a leader yet, but there was a good chance it would be Momoshiro._

"_I don't want him having any kind of power over me," I mutter, feeling sick at the thought. "I know the idiot will abuse it."_

"_Calm down, Kaidoh," Inui-senpai said. "You will very likely end up as captain with Echizen as vice-captain. Momoshiro has often said he wishes to be liked by as many people as possible. That attitude is not conducive to a leadership position. You, on the other hand, have become increasingly more comfortable around others as the year has progressed. A leadership position at this point in your life would be good for you and within your capabilities."_

_I scowled and kept pacing. "It doesn't matter how likely it is. The universe likes to cheerfully go against all probability when it comes to screwing me over. I mean, what the hell are the odds of getting hit in the head by two purses, a can of coffee, and a tennis ball all in one day? Not to mention getting run over by Momoshiro and Kamio. Stuff like that just doesn't happen to normal people."_

"_Kaidoh-"_

_I continued talking, cutting him off. "And that's the main reason I likely won't be captain. I'm not normal. I'm a weird little freak who seems anti-social because my annoying shyness makes me too much of a coward to talk to people. Momoshiro and Echizen will be in charge, and my third year will suck. Maybe I should quit the tennis club. I can play at the street courts to keep in practice, and-"_

_Inui-senpai stopped my babbling by grabbing my shoulders and kissing me. "Calm down, Kaidoh," he said softly, hugging me close._

_I pressed my head against his chest, leaning into him as he slipped his hands up under my shirt to slowly rub my back. It felt really nice. To just be held against him while his large hands moved along my bare skin._

_I normally don't like being touched, mostly because I like to be touched. Yeah, I know, that sounds weird and doesn't seem to make sense. It does though. Some people are more sensitive to touch than others. That's why I hate wearing socks or any other clothing that presses against the skin. It itches and drives me crazy after a while._

_Being touched in a non-aggressive way by another person feels good. Being touched by a stranger, or randomly patted on the shoulder by Momoshiro, freaks the hell out of me. It implies a level of intimacy that makes me really uncomfortable. _

_The only exceptions other than animals and my family are Kikumaru-senpai and Inui-senpai. Kikumaru-senpai's blatant disregard of personal space is oddly comforting sometimes. And it reinforces my fanciful suspicion that he's actually a cat in disguise, prancing around with us silly humans because it amuses him._

_I don't mind being touched by Inui-senpai because… because he's Inui-senpai, and I like it when he touches me. And with his arms around me, worrying about who was going to be the next captain of the Seigaku tennis club didn't really seem all that important anymore._

_As I basked in the warmth of his embrace, I didn't make a conscious decision to start softly kissing the side of his neck. I just needed to touch him in return, and that was the easiest way at the time. _

_He gasped, shuddering slightly, as I pressed my mouth against the place where his shoulder met his neck. That gasp turned into a moan as I flicked the tip of my tongue against that spot._

_I could feel his body responding, and I suddenly wanted him with a passionate desire like nothing I had ever felt before. It was a confusing mix of hormones, the need to touch the person wrapped around me, and something weirdly predatory._

_With a low, possessive growl, I pushed him down to the floor and straddled him, pressing my mouth against his in a passionate kiss as I frantically thrust my hips against his abdomen. He grabbed me around the waist, and I thought for a moment that he was going to push me away from him, horrified by my actions. Instead, he moved me backwards, over his groin, and arched upward._

_I shuddered with pleasure as I rubbed myself against the bulge in his pants. I couldn't reach his mouth anymore to kiss him, but it was much better like this. It made me feel good, and strangely powerful, to know that I was making him feel pleasure while experiencing it myself._

_Small sounds, like grunting but higher pitched and less harsh, were forced out of me with every forward movement of my hips. Pleasure built up like someone inflating a balloon, each thrust like a puff of air filling it until it couldn't hold anymore and popped in an explosion of incredible sensation._

_Inui-senpai cried out, his grip on my hips tightening as he jerked his pelvis upwards. Then he rolled, pinning me underneath his limp weight while we both lay there panting. We hadn't really done much more than what you could do with a firm pillow shoved between your legs, but it had felt so much better than that._

_When you touch yourself, it's because you want to do something that feels good. When another person is touching you in a sexual way, it's because they want you to feel pleasure and want to feel the same while touching you in intimate places._

_As I thought about that, my mind cleared and I started to worry that I might have just ruined everything. What if Inui-senpai hadn't been ready for our relationship to go that far yet? What if I wasn't really ready?_

"_Senpai… I'm sor-"_

"_I've heard that sexual activity can decrease stress and feelings of anxiety," he said, cutting me off. "I'll likely have to ask you several questions in order to calculate the exact percentage of these effects. We may have to repeat this activity several times in order to get all of the necessary data."_

_I blinked at him in shock, then started laughing. "You are such a _dork_."_

"_Ah, but I've collected your data, and I happen to know that you have a thing for dorks. Especially very tall dorks with spiky hair and thick glasses. Also necessary is an obsession with collecting data and a love for making unusual health drinks."_

_I raised a brow. "Well, then, it's a good thing I met you, Senpai. That seems like a tough combination to find."_

_He smirked and kissed me lightly. "Indeed."_

I leave the room to get a glass of cold water while Inui-senpai reads. I quickly drink a full glass, then refill it and take it back to his room, taking slow sips. That turns out to be a mistake.

"Hmm… I should look into the possibility of acquiring a tree costume," Inui-senpai murmurs to himself. He's finished reading and is now taking notes. "And I really should begin calculating the number of things one can do with a properly lubricated tennis racket handle. It would be good data."

The water goes down wrong, and I start choking. Inui-senpai immediately gets to his feet and starts patting me on the back. He keeps in contact with me even after I stop coughing, holding me against his side.

"I've often wondered why you pounced on me like that," he says when he's finished reading. "I had always assumed I would have to make the first move. I should have remembered that even though you rarely show it when we're alone together, you do have a very fierce, predatory side. I saw it nearly every day on the tennis courts, especially whenever you had to deal with Momoshiro."

I look at him, surprised by the tone of his voice as he says my rival's name. "You don't like Momoshiro." I suddenly realize.

Inui-senpai is silent for a moment, then answers. "My feelings toward him are similar to yours toward Renji. He has done nothing to me to earn my animosity, but…"

"But he's been an ass to someone you care about."

He nods. "Exactly."

We stand there quietly for a few minutes before Inui-senpai breaks the silence. "I was impressed with your insights on the impact of tactile contact," he says, removing my bandana and nuzzling my hair. "I've always liked touching you, especially since you seem to dislike it when others do the same. It makes me feel… special."

"You _are_ special, Senpai."


	11. Geode

**Facets of Me**

**Facet Eleven: Geode**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Prince of Tennis or the associated characters.

**Warning: **Sexual situations involving two boys. Cross-dressing.

**Author's Note:** This is the last chapter. Thank you all for reading and for the reviews.

**…**

It's Wednesday, June 19, and I'm curled up under my blanket when I should be at tennis practice. I'm always a bit depressed on June 19, but it's been years since it's affected me this badly.

It's all because of that stupid creative writing project. No. No, I'm to blame, not the assignment. It's actually a very interesting way to work on characterization. I shouldn't have poked at memories best left tucked away in the back of my mind.

I was able to keep myself under control for most of the day. Then I went to tennis practice. Momoshiro was acting even more like Tashi than usual, and it hurt. It hurt even more when he called me Mamushi and tried to pick a fight with me, once again proving that the biggest difference between them is that Momoshiro is a jerk.

Instead of fighting with him, I just hissed half-heartedly at him and grabbed my things, leaving without even bothering to ask for permission. I would be in trouble because of it, but I didn't care at the time. I still don't. I had to get away from there. Had to get away from _him_.

And now I'm curled up on my bed, hugging my knees to my chest and hiding under my blanket like a child afraid of monsters. Unfortunately, the monsters are within me, and the legendary magic of the all-mighty blanket is unable to protect me from my own emotions.

My cell phone rings, drawing me from my thoughts. I would ignore it, except the ring tone is the first few bars of The Mad Scientists' Ball, and I feel a stab of guilt. I should have paid attention to the time and called Inui-senpai once tennis practice at his school was over.

"Senpai, I'm sorry," I immediately say into the phone. "I left school early and went home."

"Are you okay?" he asks in concern.

"…Yeah." I don't sound very convincing.

"Kaidoh-"

"Can I come to your house today, Senpai?" I blurt, cutting him off.

He's silent for a moment. "Of course. You usually come by anyway to see Kageko."

After I hang up, I go to my closet and stare at the blue and lavender dress near the back. Glancing around the room as if someone might spontaneously appear, I grab the dress and carefully fold it into a shopping bag.

I slip quietly out into the hall, looking around. I don't want my mother to catch me with the dress. She'd either be upset or, even worse, she'd have me put it on and go into crazed makeover mode. She has a lot of photos of me in dresses and skirts tucked away under her bed. It's kind of freaky and makes me wonder if maybe she was happier for the year or so when I insisted I was her daughter.

I make it out of the house without being seen and quickly jog to Inui-senpai's building. When I knock on the apartment door, Inui-san opens it. She's dressed up and has her purse, which means she's about to head out.

"Kaoru-kun!" she chirps happily before looking over her shoulder. "Sadaharu! Your adorable little friend is here!"

I blush and duck my head. My peers might think I'm weird looking, but older women always seem to think I'm cute. This is a good thing, I guess, but I have the lurking suspicion that most of them would really like to stuff me into a pink bunny suit or something just as nauseatingly cute.

"You boys have fun and play nice," Inui-san says, patting me on my bandana-clad head as she leaves. Inui-senpai's mother is a strange woman and sometimes acts like we're ten or something.

Inui-senpai is standing behind the couch. It's hard to tell because of his glasses, but I think he's looking at the shopping bag I'm holding.

"It's been a month and a week since your birthday," he says quietly. It's today, isn't it?"

I nod, and Inui-senpai comes over to me, taking my arm and gently dragging me to the bathroom. Then he pushes me inside and closes the door behind me. I stare into the mirror for a few seconds before changing into the dress. It looks disturbingly good on me.

Inui-senpai knocks on the door, only coming in after I say it's okay. I blink at him in surprise. He's holding the box he usually keeps hidden under his bed. Why is he bringing _that_ in here? We usually only use the stuff in the box when Inui-senpai wants to collect data of an… erotic nature.

My cheeks heat, and I force myself to think of something else as my body begins to react to the memories associated with that box. The dress is much better at hiding that sort of thing than pants. Why do girls get to wear them when they'd be so much more useful for boys?

Inui-senpai sets the box down on the toilet lid and pulls out a small makeup bag. "There was an eighty-five percent chance that you'd wear that on the anniversary of Tashi's death, and a ninety percent chance that you'd be more comfortable doing so here than at your own home," he explains, pulling out a dark blue eyeliner pencil. "I didn't want my mother to wonder what I was doing with makeup, so I hid it in the box."

He takes a step toward me, and I try not to blink or pull away as he uses the eyeliner. Then he applies a light dusting of blush to my cheeks before producing a tube of pink lipstick. He finishes up with lavender eye shadow, then steps back to take a look.

He seems tense, like he's fighting the urge to do something. I swallow nervously, wishing I could see his eyes. Then again, maybe it's good that I can't. I'm sure I look ridiculous. He's probably trying his hardest not to laugh at me.

Inui-senpai suddenly pulls me against him and presses his lips to mine, his hands warm against the side of my face as he kisses me like he wants to devour me. He doesn't break the kiss until we're both panting for breath. I stare up at him, my surprise and hormone-fogged mind vaguely noting that there's pink lipstick smeared across his mouth.

He wipes it away with the back of his hand and carefully reapplies my lipstick before moving behind me and turning me toward the mirror. I don't look like a boy in drag. I look… pretty. Like a young lady who cleans up well, but isn't afraid of getting her hands dirty with an honest day's work.

"I'm not a girl," I mutter, mostly to myself.

Inui-senpai is also looking at my reflection in the mirror, and I can tell he really likes the view. He's pressed tightly enough against my back that I can feel his growing arousal. I'm not sure how feel about that. Is he turned on because I look like a girl, or just because I'm me and am looking really nice right now?

"No, you're not a girl," he agrees, somewhat answering my internal questions. "You look quite fetching in a dress though. It's a pity that people place gender restrictions on articles of clothing. An attractive garment is an attractive garment. Why should it only be socially acceptable for certain people to wear it?

"I think a lot of people would be much happier with themselves is society didn't try to dictate the feelings and reactions of people based on gender. Boys are supposed to be strong, tough, and active. I've known many girls who fit that mold. Girls are supposed to be elegant, beautiful, soft-spoken, and charming. That's a pretty good description of Fuji, don't you think?"

I nod, mostly to prove that I'm listening.

"And it doesn't make him less of a boy. It's just the way he is. The entire purpose of gender is for reproduction. It has only a small impact on our personalities, beyond that which society imposes on us due to it.

"If a female plays a rough sport usually favored by males, she is still female and is thus engaging in feminine activity. You are male," he says, sliding his hand under the knee-length skirt and into my underwear as if to prove a point. "Therefore, whatever you choose to do is masculine, even if you choose to be wearing a dress."

"So, you're saying that gender based personality traits are utter bullshit imposed on humanity by society?" I ask. My voice sounds a bit huskier than usual as Inui-senpai slowly moves his hand up and down while rocking his hips against me.

"Essentially, yes," he says. I moan softly as he nibbles at the side of my neck before continuing. "There _is_ a gender based tendency toward certain behavior patterns, especially in the teenage years, but for the most part, there is no basis for declaring some activities, personality traits, and modes of dress as masculine and others as feminine."

"Gender based tendency toward certain behavior patterns?" I repeat. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Inui-senpai reach into the box and pull out a bottle of lube. "Do you mean mating behaviors?"

I'm still looking into the mirror, and I see his reflection nod. He takes his hand out of my underwear and moves his hips away from me for a moment. He raises a brow in a silent question, and I have a pretty good idea of what he's asking. It seems weird for our first time doing this to be in the middle of a philosophical discussion on the nature of gender, but at the same time it's oddly appropriate and very Inui-senpai-ish.

"Most of the real differences in traits are connected to sex in some way," he says as I lean forward, bracing my hands against the edge of the sink in an equally silent answer to his question.

He flips the back of my dress a little bit and pulls my underwear down. Then he gives a shuddering gasp of pleasure as he pushes inside me.

There's a lot of talk about the first time being painful, but most people who do this are nervous the first time and have absolutely no idea what the hell they're doing. Because of all the times we've played around with the things in Inui-senpai's box, I'm relaxed and pretty much know what to expect. There's no pain, just the incredible sensation of warm, human flesh gliding back and forth along sensitive nerve endings.

"For example," Inui-senpai says huskily, continuing the conversation as he slips his hand back between my legs, stroking me, "while a female would be just as likely as a male to think lewd thoughts about a tennis racket, it is extremely unlikely that a female would ever engage in contemplated tree humping."

A natural blush of both pleasure and embarrassment overpowers the dusting of makeup Inui-senpai put on my cheeks. "You're never going to let me live that down, are you?"

Inui-senpai just chuckles and increases the speed and power of his thrusts. I bite my tongue to keep from crying out. Biting my lip would have hurt less, but I don't want to ruin my lipstick. Makeup induced vanity is apparently one of those things that isn't really gender specific. I say much to Inui-senpai, and he laughs.

The conversation is at a point where it could go on for a while, but I don't think either of us has the capacity for deep thought anymore. All I can really focus on is the caress of Inui-senpai's hand and the movement of his hips.

He suddenly sinks his teeth into the side of my neck, muffling any vocalizations as he rapidly jerks against me in climax. He increases the speed of his hand, and it's enough to push me over the edge.

About twenty minutes later, I'm lazily curled up on Inui-senpai's bed, playing with my kitten while he does his homework. I'm already drowsy from our previous activity, and the soft sound of his voice as he murmurs to himself is almost enough to lull me to sleep. In an effort to stay awake, I think about the creative writing assignment that led to Inui-senpai knowing more about me than anyone other than my brother.

"Senpai, what kind of gemstone do you think I'm like?" I suddenly ask.

He stops mumbling to himself and looks over his shoulder at me, cocking his head slightly as he gives me his full attention. "It isn't a gemstone, but the geological formation that best represents you is the geode. Like you, it has a rough, hard exterior. But if you're able to look inside, you'll find beautiful crystals."

"You… really see me that way?"

He gets up and sits beside me on the bed, smiling absently when Kageko pounces on him. "The crystals in a geode are more delicate than the rock covering and more easily damaged or destroyed. There are many aspects of you that are like that. You keep them safe by hiding them away within the darker, harder aspects of yourself."

"Those darker aspects aren't just a shell," I say quietly.

"I know. The rock and the crystal are both connected parts of the geode. Without the rock, it's just a collection of crystals, and without the crystals, it would just be a rock," he says, wrapping his arms around me in a warm hug. "Thank you, Kaidoh."

I blink at him. "For what?"

He kisses me softly on the forehead. "For trusting me enough to let me glimpse so many of your different facets. It's really meant a lot to me, getting to read the stories of your life. Especially because you didn't have to share them with me."

I pull away from him and study him in silence for a moment. He's a major part of my life, and he loves me for who I am. It seems only right for him to know some of why I am who I am.

I slowly smile at him. "You're welcome, Senpai."

**… End ...**

Some pictures I doctored up from the anime to show what Kaidoh looks like with his makeup: ht tp:// www. tasukifics. net/ kkm2.jpg and ht tp:// www. tasukifics. net/ momom1.gif

Just take C&P and take out the spaces.


End file.
